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Odds and Ends: Adam Jones, Weaver, Jocketty

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You know how it works…random rumors and links to clear out my inbox.

Kotsay Traded To Braves For Devine

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UPDATE, 1-12-08 at 5:01pm: According to ESPN’s Buster Olney, an agreement is in place for the A’s to send Kotsay to the Braves for reliever Joey Devine.  The A’s will also eat $5.325MM of Kotsay’s ’08 salary, leaving the Braves on the hook for only $2MM.  Essentially Billy Beane bought Devine.

UPDATE, 1-11-08 at 3:54pm: MLB.com’s Mychael Urban has a source who believes the Braves would not pay more than $3MM of Kotsay’s $8MM salary.

FROM 1-11-08 at 3:09pm:

David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution just posted his upcoming story in the comments of his blog.  He says Billy Beane called Mark Kotsay this morning, informing him that he is discussing a trade with Atlanta.  The Braves would get salary relief and give up a mid-level prospect, as expected.

Slusser On The Dan Haren Trade

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Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle was recently named Rumor Royalty for the A’s.  She answered a few questions for MLBTR for the series.

MLBTR: Some have called Billy Beane’s return on Dan Haren "quantity over quality."  Do you agree?  What is your opinion on the Haren haul?

Slusser: My understanding is that the A’s felt that Arizona might be the best match all along for Haren and that they received pretty much exactly what they asked for, so clearly these are prospects the A’s valued highly, Carlos Gonzalez and Brett Anderson in particular. Maybe there’s some belief the A’s should have gotten one of the Diamondbacks’ young big-leaguers, but that was never on the table. I’m not sure they would have done better elsewhere, and they got some quality and certainly quantity – which isn’t a bad thing. Mark Ellis was a throw-in in the Damon deal, essentially; no one really noticed him at the time. He turned out to be the most valuable piece, long-term.

Emil Brown Signs With A’s

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The A’s signed 33 year-old outfielder Emil Brown to a one-year deal today.  Terms are not yet known; Brown made $3.45MM in 2007.

Mychael Urban’s sources say the Brown signing is linked to Oakland’s likely Mark Kotsay trade, a deal that might be finalized on Monday.

Brown had a dreadful ’07, slumping to .257/.300/.347 in 113 games.  Before that, though, he posted a respectable .800+ OPS in 2005-06.  The KC Star recently summed up Brown’s Royals career, including the pellet gun incident.

Rosenthal’s Latest: Feliz, Ellis, Lohse

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Ken Rosenthal checks in with a new column of hot stove material.

  • Rosenthal says some suitors are popping up for third baseman Pedro Feliz: the Dodgers, Brewers, Phillies, and Giants.  Phillies Assistant GM Ruben Amaro Jr. confirmed interest today in an MLB.com chat.  Rosenthal admits that the Dodgers don’t seem like a great fit.  He says Bill Hall would have to be traded to make room for Feliz, though Tom Haudricourt implied today that Hall would stay put.  It was said Wednesday that the Giants’ talks with Feliz were stalling over his three-year demand.
  • Rosenthal suggests Mark Ellis would be a nice fit for Colorado, though keep in mind that the San Francisco Chronicle’s Susan Slusser told us that he was the best bet among veterans to remain with Oakland for 2008.  The Rockies’ current plan is to go with Jayson Nix and keep Marcus Giles around as another option.  I’d be surprised if either pans out.
  • Instead of the four or even five-year demands we were hearing about for Kyle Lohse, Rosenthal says three years with a vesting option for the fourth would now be acceptable.  He believes Lohse’s salary could near $12MM.  Lohse recently said he’s down to about three suitors.
  • Rosenthal still expects the A’s to sign a free agent outfielder, with possible target Mike Cameron headed to Milwaukee.  Take a look at our newly updated free agent list to see who’s out there.

Odds and Ends: Morneau, Jocketty, Santana

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Your usual dose of random rumors and links…

A’s Interested In Cameron

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Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports in with new info regarding an A’s target.  She says Mike Cameron is in their sights, and the A’s have had "several conversations" with his agent.  The A’s weren’t mentioned as a contender for Cameron last night; he is expected to land with the Brewers or Yankees.

Slusser also names a couple of available right-handed hitting free agent outfielders in Reggie Sanders and Rondell White.  Those are just examples, though – there is no current indication that the A’s have interest.

Slusser adds that there’s nothing to recent rumors of a Huston Street for Coco Crisp swap.  That one sounds like fan speculation (in fact I think I saw it in our comments somewhere).

Slusser On Barry Bonds Possibilities

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We recently named Susan Slusser Rumor Royalty for the A’s.  She is the team’s beat writer for the San Francisco Chronicle.  As part of the feature she answered a few questions for us.

MLBTR: Could you see any team beside the A’s signing Barry Bonds?  In your estimation, what’s the most the A’s would pay for a year of Bonds

Slusser: An insider told me at the winter meetings that two other teams besides the A’s had asked about Bonds, so it’s impossible to rule out. If he plays – and that seems to be a pretty big if — Oakland has the best shot, but estimating a salary is really tough. If there’s no other interest and Bonds really wants to play, considering all the issues that surround him, the price tag could be pretty cheap, say $5-$6 million. If there’s more interest, it could go up. The A’s did pay Mike Piazza $8 million last year.

Do the A’s really want Bonds, though? There are good reasons to sign him, and equally solid reasons not to. They need to put fans in the seats after moving their most popular player, and they don’t have much in the middle of the order right now. On the other hand, they might alienate much of their fan base with Bonds, and a team that is in "full bore” rebuilding mode might not be looking to spend on a 43-year-old free agent with lots of legal problems and an iffy clubhouse reputation. There is no doubt it has been discussed internally, however.

Odds and Ends: Reyes vs. Ramirez, Blanton, Colon

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Let’s round up some random links for today…

Slusser On Blanton/Street/Ellis Trade Possibilities

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Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle was recently named Rumor Royalty for the A’s.  As part of the feature, I asked her a few questions.

MLBTR: It seems Joe Blanton is a hot commodity, but we’re not hearing much about Huston Street or Mark Ellis. Do you expect any of these three to be with the team on Opening Day?

Slusser: I think Blanton gets moved by the trading deadline, at the latest, but probably before then. Street opens the season with the team but potentially could get moved by the deadline if a contender were to lose a closer, but overall, he’s less likely than Blanton to get dealt – he’s three years younger and, coming off an arm injury, he’s not going to bring back as much. Ellis has one year left on his deal, so wouldn’t bring a ton in return, plus he’s a great guy to have as a role model for young players. Clearly, no one is untouchable at this point, but of all the A’s more veteran guys, he’s the best bet to be around all year.

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